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You can go to jail if your child misses too much school

A mother of a 15-year-old is the first parent to be charged under the Cape Girardeau School District's tougher attendance policy, which Cape Girardeau County's prosecuting attorney says is "rattling the cages" of parents and guardians of habitually absent children.
Susan Hager, 43, 1413 William St., has been charged with educational neglect, or violating the compulsory school attendance law, a misdemeanor. She faces up to 15 days in jail, a $300 fine and the possibility of probation of up to two years.

School records show Hager's child, enrolled at the Cape Girardeau Alternative Education Center, missed 15 days of school between Aug. 20 and Oct. 26, according to the probable-cause statement filed by the prosecuting attorney's office. The school sent letters to the student's parents following three, five and 10 unexcused absences, warning that the child was missing too many days of school and that Hager, who has custody, "had the duty to make sure the child attended school," the complaint states.

Per the beefed-up attendance policy that makes 10 unexcused absences an actionable offense, the prosecuting attorney's office sent Hager a hand-delivered warning letter Oct. 19, giving final warning that she would be prosecuted if the child continued to miss school.

"Even after receiving the letter, the defendant has still failed to make sure the child attends school," according to the probable-cause statement.

Hager could not be reached for comment.

Hager is the first to be charged under the tougher attendance policy, but Prosecuting Attorney Morley Swingle said his office has delivered at least six other warning letters to parents or guardians of children with 10 or more unexcused absences.

Swingle said the new policy has had its intended effect, that parents who haven't taken school attendance seriously are getting the message.

"I think it has caught their attention; it's rattling their cages," he said. "The whole goal is to give teeth to the school district. Without us backing it up, people could ignore it with impunity, and they have in the past.

"We sent a message out loud and clear that they can't ignore."

Swingle said school officials reported they noticed a positive change in attendance immediately, just as the district had hoped when the policy was first implemented.

"That's our long-term goal, that parents get children to school," he said. "Our best-case scenario is we prosecute nobody under this."

Carla Fee, principal at the Alternative Education Center, said she has seen a difference in attendance in recent weeks.

"We did a lot of communicating with parents as to the consequences, and that made a huge difference," said Fee, who also serves as the district's coordinator of at-risk programs.

Improving attendance, district officials say, is critical in the campaign to raise the high school graduation rate to 90 percent by 2013. The rate was 73 percent in the last school year, up slightly from the previous year but down from 80.9 percent in 2006, according to state statistics.

Some Cape Girardeau residents have criticized the attendance policy, asserting it unfairly catches parents struggling with incorrigible children, or, as Fee says, students who "don't care if their parents go to jail."

Swingle said the updated code strengthens enforcement of a Missouri law long on the books and isn't designed to go after parents of truants.

"If we have a situation where a parent is dropping off a teen who is going in the front door and out back door, in that case the child gets taken to a juvenile center and that is handled in juvenile court for truancy," he said. "The ones we prosecute are the ones too lazy or irresponsible to get their children to school."

The prosecuting attorney's office has filed charges in educational neglect cases in the past, but prosecution typically occurred after a child had missed 30 days or more. By that time, educators told Swingle, it was too late to salvage the child's failing grades.

Well, the parents should be held responsible if their kid is truant, but at the same time, I'm a little torn on this. What if the parents did the best they could but their kid is an idiot? It's a bit of a thing worth debating over imo.

This is stupid on so many levels. I get the idea behind it, but if a kid doesn't go to school there is only so much a parent can do.

A. How does taking a parent away from their child for 2 weeks help the child at all?
B. How do they choose which parent is to blame for their kid not going to school?
C. How much more can a parent do than get their kid to a bus stop if they have to be at work as well. Good idea, make the parent late for work so they lose their job instead.

That's so stupid. The school should focus on providing a quality education, not locking up parents.

These administrators are somehow under the assumption that every student should have a near perfect attendance record. GTFO!!! A small portion of students will always cut class/ fail out. You can't change that. A lot of those kids actually go on to be very successful people. If the kid doesn't want to go to class that's his/her problem. It's called teaching them responsibility. Forcing someone to do something is not teaching.

This is stupid on so many levels. I get the idea behind it, but if a kid doesn't go to school there is only so much a parent can do.

A. How does taking a parent away from their child for 2 weeks help the child at all?
B. How do they choose which parent is to blame for their kid not going to school?
C. How much more can a parent do than get their kid to a bus stop if they have to be at work as well. Good idea, make the parent late for work so they lose their job instead.

For C: Find another responsible parent who takes their own kid to bring the child directly to the school.

I missed a shitton of school Senior year, about one day every week. And if I didn't miss a day one week, I would miss 2 the next to make up for it, and I was late nearly every day. I still managed a 3.8 GPA Senior year as well. So yeah, lock up Mommy for that

They used to threaten my mom everyday when I was still in school. I literally ditched every ****ing day last year, Id show up high as **** like 2 periods late, then just dip out after another 2 periods Nothing ever happened, no detentions, no arrests.

If there's one thing I find ******** about skipping is that if a kid skips one too many times, he/she gets suspended. What the point in that? All the school is doing is giving that kid more time off, something that he/she wants.

If there's one thing I find ******** about skipping is that if a kid skips one too many times, he/she gets suspended. What the point in that? All the school is doing is giving that kid more time off, something that he/she wants.

Exactly, your punishment for not going to school, is staying at home! I started finding ways to get suspended last year just for free time off. I got 8 days in the last good month and a half or so.

Exactly, your punishment for not going to school, is staying at home! I started finding ways to get suspended last year just for free time off. I got 8 days in the last good month and a half or so.

One time, I was having a conversation with my dad, saying how much I enjoy college better than high school and he said "Well, when you're in college, the people here are more mature, they want to be there, they're serious about their education. Whereas to high school, kids will do anything to get kicked out simply because they were forced to go. "

The mother was given several letters, and multiple personal visits by school officials. She simply was neglectful in this situation. It literally came down to nothing else was going to get her attention.

She has the responsibility to raise a child, and get them to school. If that child skips, that parent needs to take control of the situation and address the issue.